Sunday, September 20, 2015

Today in History for Sept. 20, 2015

Candy Cummings in 1872.

Sept. 20, 1519 – Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan set
sail from Sanlúcar de Barrameda in Spain with about 270 men on his expedition
to circumnavigate the globe and to find a route to the Spice Islands of
Indonesia. Magellan was killed during the trip, but one of his ships eventually
made the journey.

Sept. 20, 1777 - Near Paoli, Pa., General Charles Grey and
nearly 5,000 British soldiers launched a surprise attack on a small regiment of
Patriot troops commanded by General Anthony Wayne in what became known as the
Paoli Massacre. Not wanting to lose the element of surprise, Grey ordered his
troops to empty their muskets and to use only bayonets or swords to attack the
sleeping Americans under the cover of darkness. With the help of a Loyalist spy
who provided a secret password and led them to the camp, General Grey and the
British launched the successful attack on the unsuspecting men of the
Pennsylvania regiment, stabbing them to death as they slept.

Sept. 20, 1778 – Russian admiral, cartographer, and explorer
Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen was born at Lahhentagge manor, Ösel Island,
Governorate of Livonia, Russian Empire (now in Salme Parish, Saare County,
Estonia). He participated in the first Russian circumnavigation of the globe
and subsequently became a leader of another circumnavigation expedition, which
discovered the continent of Antarctica.

Sept. 20, 1806 - After nearly 2-1/2 years spent exploring
the western wilderness, the Corps of Discovery arrived at the frontier village
of La Charette, the first white settlement they had seen since leaving behind
the outposts of eastern civilization in 1804. Entirely out of provisions and
trade goods and subsisting on wild plums, Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, and
their men were understandably eager to reach home. Upon arriving at La
Charette, the men fired a three-round salute to alert the inhabitants of their
approach and were answered by three rounds from the trading boats moored at the
riverbank.

Sept. 20-21, 1819 - The first general election in Alabama
for governor, members of the U.S. Congress, legislators, court clerks, and
sheriffs was held as specified by the Constitution of 1819. Held on the third
Monday and following Tuesday of September, the voters elected William Wyatt
Bibb as the state’s first governor.

Sept. 20, 1845 – Russian explorer Matvei Gedenschtrom died
in extreme poverty at the age of 65 in the village of Kaidukovaya near Tomsk.

Sept. 20, 1848 – The American Association for the
Advancement of Science was established in Philadelphia. Its stated purpose was
to “procure for the labors of scientific men increased facilities and a wider
usefulness.”

Sept. 20, 1859 – William Rabb Sr., who settled in Conecuh
County, Ala. in 1819, died. He was one of Conecuh’s first store owners and
farmers.

Sept. 20, 1861 – During the Civil War, a skirmish was fought along Seneca
Creek, Md.

Sept. 20, 1863 – During the Civil War, the Battle of
Chickamauga, Tenn. concluded in northwestern Georgia. It was the bloodiest
two-day battle of the conflict, and the only significant Confederate victory in
the war's Western Theater. One of the largest battles of the war, Chickamauga
resulted in 18,500 Confederate casualties and 16,100 Union casualties

Sept. 20, 1878 – Muckraking pioneer Upton Sinclair was born
in Baltimore, Md. He is best known for his 1906 novel, “The Jungle.”

Sept. 20, 1881 – U.S. President Chester A. Arthur was sworn
in as the 21st U.S. President, the morning after becoming President upon James
A. Garfield's death from wounds inflicted in an assassination attempt.

Sept. 20, 1887 – Rube Burrow, who would rob a train near
Flomaton and eventually get gunned down in Linden, and his gang committed their
fourth train robbery at Mary’s Creek near Benbrook, Texas. They robbed the
evening train bound for Fort Worth.

Sept. 20, 1897 – A quarantine was declared by the health
officials of the town and county against Mobile, Ala. on account of yellow
fever. Later, train service between Flomaton and Repton was discontinued on
account of sporadic cases of fever at or near Flomaton.

Sept. 20, 1915 – The public school in Conecuh County,
Alabama’s Mt. Zion community opened on this Monday with an enrollment of 40
pupils. W.F. Chandler of China was the principal, and Stella Mason of Wilcox
County was assistant.

Sept. 20, 1921 - KDKA in
Pittsburgh, Pa. started a daily radio newscast, one of the first in the U.S.

Sept. 20, 1922 – “Mr. Pugh” of the Conecuh County, Alabama’s
Fairfield community killed a five-foot-long rattlesnake with 21 rattles on
Bankston Creek.

Sept. 20, 1927 - Babe Ruth hit his 60th home run of the
season. He beat his own record of 59 that he set in 1921.

Sept. 20, 1928 – Poet, editor and literary critic Donald
Hall was born in Hamden, Conn. He was named the 14th poet laureate of the
United States in 2006.

Sept. 20, 1930 – Russian anthropologist and explorer
Gombojab Tsybikov died at the age of 57 in Aginskoye,
Buryat-Mongol ASSR, Soviet Union. Tsybikov is mostly credited for being
the first photographer of Tibet, including Lhasa.

Sept. 20, 1931 – Huntsville, Ala. native Gabby
Street made his final Major League Baseball appearance, taking the field for
the St. Louis Cardinals

Sept. 20, 1940 – Pensacola “Radio Stars” Tex Dunn and his
Virginia Hillbillies were scheduled to perform at the Megargel (Ala.) School
House on this Friday night. The event was sponsored by the PTA and included ice
cream, drinks and sandwiches.

Sept. 20, 1945 – American occultist, journalist, and
explorer William Seabrook committed suicide by drug overdose at the age of 61
in Rhinebeck, N.Y.

Sept. 20, 1950 – Army Pvt. Dixie C. Pritchett of Clarke
County, Ala. was killed in action in Korea.

Sept. 20, 1966 – On this night, the Castleberry (Ala.) Gin
Co. caught fire, but Evergreen firefighters responded to the fire and quickly
brought the blaze under control, holding the damage to a minimum.

Sept. 20, 1966 – The Evergreen (Ala.) City Council granted
Harry Ellis and Charles Burt, the owners of Miller Trading Co., a building
permit to construct a building next door to its main store building on Cooper
Street for the handling of bulk fertilizer.

Sept. 20, 1968 - Denny McClain of the Detroit Tigers became
the first player to achieve 31 wins in 37 years.

Sept. 20, 1970 - Jim Morrison was found guilty, in Miami,
Fla. of indecent exposure and profanity. He was acquitted on charges of
"lewd and lascivious" behavior. The charges were related to a
performance by the Doors.

Sept. 20, 1973 - Willie Mays
announced that he would retire at the end of the season.

Sept. 20, 1974 – In a “thriller” in
Monroeville, Ala., Evergreen High School beat Monroe County High School, 8-7.
Albert Stallworth scored on an eight-yard run for Evergreen, and the two-point
conversion came on a pass from Mike Faulkner to Darris Champion. Other standout
Evergreen players in that game included Marvin Williams, Pat Dawson and Willie
Ingram. Standout Monroe County High School players in that game included Willie
Lett and Johnny Bartlett.

Sept. 20, 1978 – The
Henry-Beeland-Stanley House in Greenville, Ala. was added to the Alabama
Register of Landmarks and Heritage.

Sept. 20, 1979 - The first episode of "Buck Rogers in
the 25th Century" aired on NBC.

Sept. 20, 1981 - Marcus Allen of the University of Southern
California rushed for 274 yards and scored two touchdowns in a 21-0 victory
over Indiana.

Sept. 20, 1982 - The NFL Players Association announced that
a strike would begin at the completion of the Packers-Giants game on Monday
night. The strike would last for 57 days.

Sept. 20, 1982 - The first episode of the television series
“Madame's Place,” co-written by
Alabama author Carter Crocker, was broadcast.

Sept. 20, 1984 - Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds recorded
his 100th hit of the season. It was the 22nd consecutive season he had recorded
at least 100 hits in a season.

Sept. 20, 1985 - Tommy Kramer of the Minnesota Vikings threw
for 436 yards and three touchdowns in a 33-24 loss to the Chicago Bears.

Sept. 20, 1986 - Tony Gwynn of the San Diego Padres stole
five bases in one game against Houston.

Sept. 20, 1987 - Walter Payton scored his 107th touchdown to
break the NFL record held by Jim Brown.

Sept. 20, 1993 - John Carney of the San Diego Chargers
kicked six field goals to extend his consecutive field goal streak to 29
straight games. The Chargers beat the Houston Oilers, 18-17.

Sept. 20, 1996 – Sparta Academy improved to 3-1 on the
season with a 7-6 win over Fort Dale-South Butler in Greenville, Ala. Lyle Bell
led Sparta’s offense with 88 yards on 21 carries.

Sept. 20, 1996 – Monroe County High School’s Bucky Busby
kicked a 24-yard field goal with 1:12 left in the game to give Monroe a 17-16
win over Hillcrest-Evergreen in Monroeville, Ala.

Sept. 20, 1996 – Joe Hyde officially retired from The
Evergreen Courant after 53 years. He was hired to work at the paper in 1943 by
R.G. Bozeman Sr. and saw the paper go from hand set type to the computer era.

Sept. 20, 1998 - Cal Ripken, Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles
ended his record streak of playing in 2,632 games. He had played in every game
since May 30, 1982.

Sept. 20, 2001 – In an address to a
joint session of Congress and the American people, U.S. President George W.
Bush declared a "War on Terror."

Sept. 20, 2002 - Tom Gamboa, coach of the Kansas City
Royals, was attacked by a man and his son while he was standing near first
base. The two fans were arrested and charged with battery.

Sept. 20, 2013 – Bubba’s BBQ in Evergreen was scheduled to
be featured on WSFA’s “County Road 12” segment on this Friday at 6 p.m. TV news
anchor Judd Davis and cameraman Jeff Harrison interviewed Bubba’s owner Pat
Poole for two hours on Sept. 17 during a visit to the restaurant.